The company has today announced a major training program that seeks to aid businesses in progressing AI skills. Facebook will train individuals in important artificial intelligence skills. To kick the program off, the company has expanded AI investment and its scholarship in France. Ciaran Quilty, Facebook’s vice president of small businesses for Europe, Middle East, and Africa, was quick to point out how important the platform is for small businesses. He says 35 percent of small businesses in Europe use the platform. The company will open new community skills hubs in Poland, Italy, and Spain. The company aims to train 1 million individuals in AI throughout the European Union by 2020. “Small businesses are the heart of our economies and create the majority of new jobs all around the world. Through Community Boost EU, Facebook will work side by side with small businesses and startups to help them grow and hire. We’re building additional programs to help people with the skills and resources they need to get jobs or put their own ideas into action.”
Community Hubs
The new community hubs will work in collaboration with local organizations. They will offer training in online security, digital skills, and AI literacy. Facebook already has a hub in Berlin, which will be used as the template for the new locations. As part of a three-year commitment, the company will work with Freeformers to train 300,000 people in Germany, Poland, Spain, Italy, France, and the UK. 75,000 individuals will be trained on location, while the rest will learn online. “We’ll offer business owners more types of training to help them expand their digital footprint and find new customers around the corner and around the globe. This includes in-person training for 100,000 SMBs by 2020 and online training for 250,000 businesses.”
